


Two Completely Different Things

by Alba_Pikeman



Category: Wiedźmin | The Witcher (Video Game), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types, Wiedźmin | The Witcher Series - Andrzej Sapkowski
Genre: Drinking, Erotica, Friendship, Love/Hate, M/M, Political, Slow Build, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:02:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,230
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27587860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alba_Pikeman/pseuds/Alba_Pikeman
Summary: King Foltest is scheming a trade-off deal with the ruler of Toussaint under the nose of the Empire. However, when he arrives in Beauclair for the negotiations, he is unpleasantly surprised to find out the Emperor of Nilfgaard has made an unexpected visit. The story is about the two rulers meeting up, discussing politics, getting to know and understand each other, and slowly building up the chemistry that escalates to something they would both pretend never happened.
Relationships: Emhyr var Emreis/ Foltest, Foltest & Emhyr var Emreis, Foltest/ Emhyr var Emreis
Comments: 8
Kudos: 29





	Two Completely Different Things

Northern Realms, after 1268

Two years have passed since the tables of war have turned in Brenna; the legendary battle of the Northerners against a multiple by a long run, more disciplined and modern enemy force. Although, in the end, the underdogs were victorious and peace finally purified the lands from the Imperial flame over the tortured Northern Kingdoms, what put an end to the war, started something much worse. Political chaos, poverty, plague, and scorched earth. Those combined had the potential to take more lives than the two wars, that is if the Northern countries failed to find a common ground. 

During that political discourse, with the peace being signed in Cintra, some rulers even agreed to work with the enemy for the sake of stabilizing their kingdoms. Every country for itself, politicians would say. Unfortunately, that quick solution was what would solidify the complete dependence of those countries on the Imperial economy. After all, what can’t be conquered with swords, could be conquered with market influence. 

Temeria was one of the countries that was hit by the aftermath of the war the hardest. The white lilies were slowly but certainly dying and by opening trade with Nilfgaard and accepting monetary help, King Foltest felt he was sleeping with the enemy. 

Chapter One  
Belhaven, 1270

“ This is a very bold decision, Sire, but it might work. For the sake of Temeria, I hope it will work!“ , commented Vernon Roche. He was undoubtedly Foltest’s most loyal man for years and his impeccable discipline, professionalism and patriotism were soon awarded with the rank of Blue Stripes Commander. Naturally, the aristocratic families and people with status in the higher circles of Temerian politics disliked him as he was impossible to bribe, threaten or manipulate. Foltest’s lapdog, they called him. “I assume half of this wasn’t even mentioned to the families.”

“ It might have slipped my mind, yes.” , Foltest shrugged. “ They’ll just have to deal with it after it’s done.”

The Temerian Stripes and their King camped outside Belhaven, soon after entering Toussaint. It had been an exhausting journey, so the detachment needed their deserved break and a few cups of Elvish wine. 

“ I only have one concern. What makes you so sure that the Duchess will keep the trade-off protocol? There’s a lot of risk on her part, especially with her privileges as a honourable sovereign of the Empire and being Emhyr’s cousin and all…”

“She is an empty- headed dung-licking goose, Vernon.”, the King dismissed the commander’s concerns. “ Her head is so far up her arse, she thinks she’s a ruler whose actions and politics matter. If I rub her the right way, she’ll be more than happy to work behind the Empire’s backs to make a statement. Also, as you said, her family ties and privileges keep her safe. This is why we go to Beauclair in person. We fondle her ego by showing some respect instead of sending some windbag ambassador and make her feel important. “

“ If I didn’t know you well, I’d be concerned about you trying to seduce her too?”, added Roche but soon his face froze at the realization of what he allowed himself to slip. Luckily for the commander, Foltest stood by having honest relations with his closest men, so he laughed off the remark and took a sip from his wine.

“ You’re quite talkative today. Listen! I want you to learn something here. There are two types of people who sleep with other people for political purposes. The first type is the unfortunates who have no say in the matter and are forcefully shipped to their future prison, to be with someone they will probably hate and have no other option but to obey. Pity those. The second type, Vernon, are mouse-hearted pestilent leeches. Never trust those for they are nothing more than glorified whores with status.”

“ Those might be most of the rulers of the Continent.”

“ Hm”, Foltest pretended as if he had heard a ground-breaking revelation and was considering it. “ Well, good thing they failed to make me either. Can you imagine? When I was younger they actually brought representatives from Redania to make me marry Vizmir’s daughter. I almost beat up the ambassador and started a war back then. What times. Now, I have to play pretend and be a patient politician. “ he finished the content of his leather cup and poured more wine to the very edge. Some liquid fell on the ground but didn’t distract the King, as he invited the commander for a small cheer. “ But it’s for Temeria.”

“For Temeria, everything goes.” Roche's cup met Foltest’s. The Blue Stripe had heard legends about his King’s wild youth and was impressed to see how far that rebellious man had grown to be the wise capable ruler who kept the country from crumbling into factions.

Chapter Two  
Beauclair, 1270

The journey along the riverbank of Sansretour took a week until the Temerians finally reached the outskirts of the Southern country’s capital. Summer in Toussaint was warm and inviting with blossomed trees and endless labyrinths of small colourful dots in the distance, that represented the houses of the Duchess’ subjects. If anything could ruin that warm inviting atmosphere, it was the small Imperial battalion scattered throughout the city.

“ Ploughing Hell!”, Foltest cursed looking through the spyglass. “What are they doing here?”

“It’s at least three hundred of them, a small battalion. Heavily armoured.”, reported the commander, although he knew that the King was seeing exactly the same thing as he was. “This looks like an occupation. Pretty damn strange for a sovereign country.”

“I agree, Vernon. This is indeed something we didn’t foresee. Send scouts, we need to know why the blacks infest Beauclair before we take any further actions.”

Roche insisted on doing the scouting himself, but was quickly denied by the King. He then proceeded on sending two of his most trusted men and gave them detailed instructions on how to approach the situation. 

In a few hours, both Foltest and Roche were relieved to notice the two men returning unharmed and undisturbed.

“ Report.”, their commanding officer directed.

“ Commander! Sire!”, one of the Stripes executed. “ The Blacks aren’t hostile. When we first saw them, most of them were quietly patrolling amongst common citizens without causing trouble. We had to speak with some of the residents and found out that the damn Emperor of Nilfgaard is visiting in two days. It’s just a measure.” 

“A bloody measure you say?”, Foltest laughed. “What kind of a small prick you gotta have to visit your own provinces with three hundred men battalion?”

“A very small one, sire. “, replied the soldier. 

“ This is going to be a nuisance. That’s what I call bad timing. Doesn’t matter, we’re going.”, the Temerian ruler took another quick glance through the spyglass and packed away the device while mumbling to himself.“ It’s worse if I disappoint the Duchess and appear as somebody who can’t keep a damn word.” 

The King cursed his own luck. The whole trade negotiation was supposed to keep Emhyr in the dark, and now they had to go through it under his nose. What concerned the Temerian ruler was that it would have been much harder to persuade Duchess Anna Henrietta with such a figure in the next room. She tended to be rebellious, but Foltest wasn’t sure how she acted under such pressure. He could handle it. 

It was all a matter of personalities and the King had a very strong one. As for the Emperor, the Temerian could admit he didn’t know much about him. Surely, he’s seen portraits, heard stories and rumours, but nothing substantial. What sort of man was Emhyr? He never showed to any of the secret meetings that he subjectively was part of, during the short peace between the First and the Second war. Ne never even attended the peace signing in Cintra, and later even married the princess of Cintra in Nilfgaard just so his foot wouldn’t touch Cintrian land. Curious. Foltest’s imagination was going in strange places. What if it was all just a fake image, masterfully-crafted Nilfgaardian propaganda, a brilliant example of a cult of personality built in the last decade. For what the King knew, the man in the portraits might have never existed. Emhyr might have been a funny-looking short fat man with balding hair. That wouldn’t be so intimidating, would be? 

He let his mind go wild for a couple of more minutes to indulge in fantasies and after dismissing his own bizarre ideas, Foltest focused more on his surroundings on the way to Beauclair. What a beautiful country, it was. The very land looked… happy, devoid of suffering and the reality of post-war times. While Temeria was struggling with poverty and plague, Toussaint was drowning in abundance. The voices of people in the distance sounded happy. 

So that’s how it is, the King thought to himself. The Southerners invade, take everything, lose the war and get no punishment. The victorious North declines while the losers relax under the sun with glasses of expensive wine next to tables full of meals most people couldn’t even pronounce their names. What a parody.

\---

In a couple of hours, the Temerian delegacy arrived in the city. The Duchess’ guard welcomed the Northern guests to the capital and escorted them to the palace. As expected, they received a few disapproving glances from the Nilfgaardian soldiers, but nothing more. 

Chapter Three  
The Duchess Palace

Anna Henrietta was an outstanding host. On the first night, she welcomed the King of Temeria and his special forces with a glamorous dinner, accompanied with music, dances and marvelous theatrical performances. Foltest suspected it might have been the Duchess showing off but he and his men needed the warm food and entertainment after the long riding between countries, so he simply went on with it and showed gratitude to the ruler. He was happy enough to see his men enjoying the night and absorbing every piece of pleasure bestowed upon them they could possibly get. They deserved all of it.

On the next day, after the advantage of long hours of sleep, the King was ready to attend the private meeting with Anna Henrietta and discuss the secret trading scheme that would help Temeria escape little by little the dependence of the Nilfgaardian economy.

As he suspected, Anna Henrietta was quite incompetent and unknowledgeable about most things. She wasn’t unintelligent at all, however, it was clear she wasn’t fit to be a ruler. Perhaps, this was the very reason Emhyr would support her status in court. 

“ I trust that your Highness would keep the eventual results of this meeting in private. Especially considering the Emperor’s arrival.”, Foltest said. He was exceptionally patient and diplomatic, but the cause was worth it. And that cause, being Temeria, of course..

“I assure His Majesty has nothing to worry about. “, Anarietta replied with her full of confidence voice. The thick Toussaint accent made her sound actually competent. “ Although Emhyr Var Emreis is in charge of the Empire that Toussaint is a part of, I am the ruler and I make the decisions for my country.”

Foltest nodded. He used sheer willpower not to laugh at the statement. He IS the ruler of Toussaint, clay-brain, he thought. This woman’s position as a head of state was as nonexistent as the weight of her decisions. Being a ruler wasn’t just about organizing events and drinking wine. Sure, the King wished that was the case, but sadly it wasn’t. The good thing was, she was brave enough to work against her own Emperor and inexperienced enough not to realize how incredibly stupid that idea was. 

“ That is enough for today, King Foltest. I am needed to attend other pressing matters. We shall continue tomorrow.”

“ I agree, we went through a lot today.”

“ Let’s sleep on it. While you’re my guest, you and your men can feel at home.”, Anna Henrietta explained. “Just two things. The Emperor will arrive today, try not to approach him uninvited. “

“I don’t intend to.”

I’ll just have a quick look at him to see if he’s a short fat bald jackass, he jokingly said to himself. The great tactical mastermind, whose ass got beaten by Temeria in Sodden during the First war, and later in Brenna during the Second. 

“ As for the second, I will arrange a private dinner at the East Wing of the palace for you and your men. I hope you wouldn’t mind.”

“ I take this as I’m not invited to the dinner in the ballroom.”

“ Oh, nothing like this. There will be no welcoming dinner in the ballroom. Emhyr Var Emreis dislikes such loud dinners with performers and rarely attends them. He usually lets his soldiers celebrate while he stays in his chambers working on whatever he’s working on.”

“ I see. “ So, he’s also really fun and pleasant to be around, Foltest sarcastically made a mental note. “ I once again thank you for your hospitality, Duchess.”

Chapter Four  
The Emperor

The Blue Stripes were loudly discussing the experiences they had in Beauclair during their first day and already made drunken profane comments at the expense of the Nilfgaardian visitors. Roche was trying his best to look strict and unbound to the jokes, but in the end he gave in and joined the unprofessional commentary. Foltest didn’t mind at all, he would usually join the hot-headed soldiers as well, but his mind was occupied with the trade deal. On top of that, the very fact that the ploughing Emperor of Nilfgaard was currently somewhere in the same palace, was rankling his curiosity. It was strange that Emhyr arrived without any sort of announcers, in full privacy, probably not even through the main gate. Was him trying that hard to cover himself in mystery, part of the propaganda that was building his image? 

“You want to appear more than you actually are, is that it?” Never in his life somebody irritated the King of Temeria that much and the latter hadn’t even seen him. 

\---

A couple of hours later, while the Temerians were still indulging in wine and sharing stories about every possible topic that existed, two Nilfgaardians from the Impera Brigade entered the terrace where the private meeting took place. 

“Oy! Look at them blacks!”, a drunk Stripe shouted. “Wanna fight, skirts?”

“ Where did these whoresons come from, I never saw a thing.”, said another, even more drunk.

“ May we speak to King Foltest?”, one of the Imperia Brigade soldiers, a young man under twenty spoke in common with a heavy Nilfgaardian accent. He seemed disgusted by the group of wasted Temerians, but kept his discipline not to comment or engage with the Stripes.

“Yes, you may.”, answered the King as politely as possible.

“King Foltest of Temeria, prince of Sodden, sovereign of Pontaria and Mahakam, senior protector of Brugge and Ellander. ..”

“Yes, yes. “, he gestured to the black-armoured soldier to skip the titles and speak to the point. 

“ His Imperial Majesty Emhyr var Emreis, Deithwen Addan yn Carn aep Morvudd - the White Flame Dancing on the Graves of his Foes. Emperor of Nilfgaard, lord of Metinna, Ebbing and Gemmera, sovereign of Nazair and Vicovaro…”

“For fuck’s sake, soldier! Get to the point!”, Foltest reminded the Nilfgaardian to be brief. 

“ So there are a couple of Emperors?” asked the Stripe seated next to Roche only to be scolded by his commander. 

“ You’re way too drunk to afford to talk. Shut up!”

The Impera Brigade officer ignored the interruption and obliged.

“ As you wish, Your Majesty. The Emperor wishes to speak to you. I will escort you.”

“Right now?”

“Correct, Your Majesty. “

“Go wait for me outside the door. I’ll go in a quarter.”

“But…”

“Do I have to repeat myself, soldier? In a quarter. “

“ I… understand, your Majesty”, said the soldier looking concerned and nodded to his partner to leave the terrace.

“Sire, was that necessary?”, asked Roche.

“Yes. Emhyr will wait just enough to get annoyed and I’ll go speak to him. “ 

“It’s very late and you have the disadvantage of a few cups of wine. He might start interrogating.”

“When have a few drinks put me in disadvantage?”

“In Mahakam, three years ago? You started a fight with Elder-in-Chief Brouver Hoog.”

“ Vernon?”

“Yes, Sire?”

“Shut up!”

\---

As promised, fifteen minutes later, King Foltest left the terrace and he did it with quite the stable step for his condition.

“ Lead the way, soldier.”

Without saying anything, the Impera Brigade men escorted the Temerian ruler to the South tower of Castle Beauclair. When they reached a heavy dark wood door, the same man who asked to speak to Foltest, entered the room and announced:

“ Your Im..”

“ Good. King Foltest will enter, you leave.”, the man got once again interrupted by a ruler, this time by the Emperor himself. His voice was calm and devoid by emotion but very demanding. The soldier froze in his steps and after a couple of seconds regained his body movement and gestured Foltest to enter the room. Then he left as instructed.

The Temerian ruler set his foot at a spacious room surrounded by tall windows. His host was sitting behind a huge desk, buried in piles of documents, orders, maps, notes. He was taking references from a couple of scrolls and was writing his conclusions on another. This scene reminded the King of how much he hated documentation and the fact that at least one pile like these was waiting for him in Vizima. 

“ Fifteen minutes of intentional delay. Just to demonstrate your insolence.” , he spoke while still writing. Once he finished with the scroll, he put the feather in its inkwell and stood up from the desk. He finally decided to turn his face towards Foltest. “ One might think a ruler should know how to act mature. “

The King was taken aback but didn’t show it. Emhyr looked exactly like in the portraits. Judging from his stance alone, the Northerner could also tell he was indeed a very intimidating person. That deep voice made things even worse. Of course, being also a ruler and therefore familiar with how authority tactics works, Foltest wasn’t intimidated, but even he felt a little bit unnerved by the Emperor. Commoners were probably terrified by his presence.There was something different about him and the Temerian couldn’t put his finger on it. Not yet at least.

“ Well, one might think that a person of your status would show a little bit of courtesy not to demand the presence of another ruler in the middle of the night. Who does that?” , his voice was strong, confident and lively, Not a trace of tipsiness. 

Emhyr showed no reaction to the remark but took a second to consider it.

“ Your point is valid. “, he decided. “ It was indeed untactful on my part. Anyway, I will be brief to not waste your time, or mine, for that matter. What is your business with the Duchess?”

Foltest didn’t believe for a second that this man admitted to a mistake. He knew people like him- it was all intentional. He was testing how drunk and exhausted his guest was, and was taking advantage .

“ I’ve heard your spies were as good as the Redanian ones. Did they fail to get you that information?.” 

Still nothing. Was he annoyed at least? The King of Temeria was really good at reading body language but there was nothing to read. That face was made of stone. The body as well. Maybe that was the great secret and what made Foltest feel alarmed. Perhaps if he played on the Emperor’s nerves a little bit, it might have gotten him a reaction.

“ I would assume you didn’t just advise me to send spies after you. It was a simple question.“

“ Alright, you win. I’m a honourable guest of the Duchess. We spoke, had some laughs, the usual exchange.”

“In a private five-hour session?”

Of course, he was going to keep pushing, Foltest thought. Perfect opportunity.

“In a private five-hour session. “, he replied. “ It’s a personal matter that doesn’t concern you. I can only assure you I’ll keep your cousin warm and safe.” The suggestion that there was something more personal between the Temerian King and the Toussaint Duchess was quite strong and convincing when it came to the Northener’s performance. Despite that, there wasn’t even the smallest shift in Emhyr’s face to indicate whether he bought the suggestion or not. How annoying.

“ I see. “, was the only thing he said in response.

“Now, I have one question for you too!. “Unnerved by the Nilfgaardian’s blank expression, Foltest was quick to change the subject. He knew the most efficient way to do that was to stop being defensive and to go on the offensive. The Emperor nodded as a sign he was listening.

“What gives you the right to order for my presence? I’m neither your subject nor your vassal puppet. As far as I remember, I’m a guest of the Duchess. As a host, she can call me all she likes… in private, but you? Did something happen that I've forgotten that obligates me to answer to you?” 

Foltest paused. For a second a thought passed his mind that he might have gone too far, but instead of trying to change the tone to a more respectful one, he added one last drop of oil to the fire.

“ It was a simple question.”

“ Very well, I will answer that since you apparently need to be reminded where you stand.”, Foltest found out that Emhyr had the irritating habit of walking aimlessly while talking. This way the King not only had to focus on listening, but also on following the movements of his interlocutor’s tall and well-built figure. It was as if the Emperor wanted the Northerner to dislike him. It was working flawlessly so far. “ You were invited by Duchess Anna Henrietta, a ruler I personally appointed to serve me. Everything you do on the territory of the Imperial state of Toussaint, private or not, can be regarded as my business. In short, you and Anna Henrietta are my guests.”

“ Even so..” Foltest tried to insert but got mercilessly dismissed.

“ Do not interrupt me when I speak.” there it was. The small slip of anger through the cracks. Barely visible and quickly dispersed into thin air. “ You are under the impression that you won a war and your confidence grew so large, you think you can afford to be disrespectful?”

“Well, I did win this war, whether you like it or not.”, Foltest shrugged. 

“ Did you really?”, Emhyr asked with a pretended ignorance. He invited his guest with a hand gesture to look from one of the windows surrounding the room. “ Does this country look defeated to you? On the other hand…” So dramatic, the King thought. and interrupted the Emperor again. 

“ Yes, yes, Temeria is not in a very good state and the victors are kinda depending on the losers economically… and so on, just get over with your stupid remarks.” and another crack in the facade. Apparently, the Emperor had gotten used to being surrounded only by people who kept their heads down near him that some healthy dose of bluntness was completely unexpected and probably unappreciated. “ Listen… I’m going to call you by your name, we’re both royals and this whole formality, especially in this Hell forsaken hour, is exhausting. Can’t we just drink and talk about something normal?”

Emhyr said nothing.

“ Do I take this as a yes?”

“ I’m trying to decide”, he made a fairly deep pause. His gaze was locked to a point in the distance outside of the window.“ Whether I should be impressed or insulted. Then again, did I really expect anything better from a King in the North? You are blunt, brave, and painfully ignorant. Very well, Foltest. You may go. Somebody has to keep these undisciplined soldiers in line, and it’s better for them if it doesn’t have to be me.”

“ What are you talking about?”, the King finally followed what Emhyr was looking at through the window and his jaw almost dropped. From the tower, one could clearly see the private terrace that the Duchess arranged for the Northeners’ dinner. His men were intoxicated to the point that they started throwing chairs and tables from the terrace, aiming at the angry Nilfgaardian soldiers in the garden below. 

“Fucking imbeciles!”, he whispered to himself, although the Emperor probably heard him. 

“ I trust you can take care of this nonsense before I lose patience and get myself involved.” 

“ Those are my men, only I handle them. “, Foltest’s casual tone went serious and authoritative. 

“ I’m counting on it.”, Emhyr almost laughed sarcastically. The King took a last good look at him. He wasn’t that unlikable, in fact, the man was very charismatic and pleasant to look at, just annoying with all that power play. Foltest headed to the door exit. Before he had the chance to open it, the Emperor spoke. “ And one last thing, Foltest. I accept your suggestion.”

“About what?”, his hand laid upon the door handle but didn’t press it yet.

“ About having a drink and talking about something normal. “, the Temerian was confused at first but then remembered he really did say that. Why would Emhyr agree to this? The thing was, Foltest didn’t really wish to spend any more time with that man, but the curiosity was consuming him from the inside. Apparently, the Nilfgaardian had the exact same issue “ I find you interesting and somehow refreshing, so I will take what you’re offering.”

“ I’m bringing my own wine. The unpoisoned Elven vintage. Do you mind?” 

“ I don’t. Also, let’s agree to do this early. Late hours are a time for leftover work, not drinking.”

“ Even better.”

At this moment, both men heard a glass-shattering sound from the Blue Stripes private dinner, followed by men cursing and swearing in Nilfgaardian. One can’t leave intoxicated Stripes unchecked. And what was Vernon doing about it? Was he as drunk as his subordinates?

“ I’m going to kill these jackasses”, Foltest mumbled under his nose, on the way out of the tower, and headed to stop his soldiers from causing another war. 

\---

On the next day, the Blue Stripes were busy with intensive training that was meant to be even further agonizing due to the hangover headache. What their Commander Vernon Roche found most painful of all wasn’t the physical pain, but the shame of his King’s disappointment. Foltest thought that was well deserved. One thing was to let the discipline loose a little bit and enjoy some good drink, singing and occasional curses at the enemies, but the soldiers always had to remember they represented Temeria and their King. And that presentation was anything but acceptable. 

The negotiations also didn’t go well. Unfortunately, Foltest’s concerns that the Duchess would back off at the presence of the Emperor in Beauclair were proven right. 

Apparently, the harpy from the South tower was pressuring Anna Henrietta the whole morning and she, unable to keep cold blood under stress, also thought of the same strategy as Foltest and explained to her cousin that they were lovers. She also wasn’t sure if Emhyr bought the story but was too afraid to proceed. This is why she offered Foltest smaller sessions. The good news was, the Emperor evidently had other things on his mind to worry about, though the Duchess had no clue what was his urgent business in Toussaint to begin with. She only knew that her informant saw him speaking to a few cloaked figures in the Southern wing. Spies maybe? Who knew.

The King hated himself for doing this. If it was just his own life or honour on the line, he wouldn’t scheme or hide from the enemy. This was not his style. But it was all about the fragile future of Temeria and he had to swallow his ego and make some sacrifices. Truth was, he now had a small son to worry about and one day, when the boy would become of age and have to sit on the throne, Foltest wanted to at least bequeath the country in a stable condition. 

\---

It was almost evening and Foltest decided to finally release the Stripes from their punishment.

“ I hope your muscles are burning and feverish so you won’t start another fight with the blacks.” , he turned to the Commander who still looked melancholic and ashamed. “Cheer up, Vernon, I need you to be at the top of your game, for I put you in charge. You’ll take care of the force. Especially Brandon and Dorian, make sure they watch their drinking.”

“ You can count on me, Sire, but where will you be?”

“ Since I’m a very interesting person, I’ve been told, I’ll drink with the harpy himself Emhyr var Emreis. “, Foltest did enjoy Roche’s shocked face at that notion. “What? You don’t like the idea of two rulers, who can’t stand each other, to drink some wine together?

“ Not, if you kill each other in the process. Is it wise to go alone? We’re here for your protection after all. “

“ You’re too paranoid. Emhyr might be everything but he honours the rules of hospitality. If he wants to kill me, he’ll probably have me killed in Temeria and cover up his involvement. But he has no motives. At least not yet. “ 

Foltest looked through the carefully arranged demijohns covered with red wicker and picked one with Temerian lilies badge, tired around its narrow neck. “ Splendid!” 

Roche was still staring into his ruler in dismay. Why was Foltest that calm? 

“ I don’t trust this man even for a second. Please, Sire, allow me to at least be near. If something happens I will break the door and …” 

“ I don’t allow it, Vernon. You have your orders, get on with it. I plan on taking this demijohn and enjoy the longest, most political and weirdest evening of my life. This might actually be fun.” 

The Blue Stripes Commander knew not to argue with his King. When a man like Foltest made up his mind about something, it had no other choice but to become a fact.  
Chapter Five

When the Temerian King arrived at the South tower of Castle Beauclair, Emhyr was once again finishing a paper. This time, however, the heavy wooden desk was empty and all piles of documents were carefully bound and put in order in caskets. The Imperia Brigade soldiers were patiently waiting alongside another man. Judging from the clothes, it was most probably a messenger. The three soldiers seemed shocked to meet the Temerian King, but bowed down before the authority figure.

“ Make yourself comfortable, I’m almost done.”, the Emperor said and after writing a few more lines, stamped the paper with a wax seal and passed it to the unfamiliar man. He gave his orders in Nilfgaardian, but Foltest knew enough words and phrases to make out by logic that the message was for Vattier de Rideaux and had to be delivered in person. As far as he understood, then the two soldiers were instructed to bring the messenger to his escort and to only guard the entrance to the tower staircase.

The Temerian remained to stand and waited. Only when the three men left the room to go on with their tasks, he joined his host on one of the chairs next to the clean desk.

“ The Brigadiers won’t be joining us, I take it.”, commented Foltest and looked around for anything that he could use as a glass.

“ Does this surprise you?”, Emhyr caught up to his guest’s request and opened a drawer under the desk to fetch two plain silver glasses. Quite modest for a megalomaniac. 

“ It’s strange. You send a battalion in advance, for your own safety, but risk leaving the tower unguarded.”, the Temerian poured himself and his host from the demijohn as an act of courtesy and put the vessel on the table. 

“ What is your conclusion?”, Emhyr didn’t care to try the Temerian drink before his guest tried it first. 

“ The battalion isn’t here to protect you. It’s here to protect someone or something else.” , Foltest took a sip, then another then decided to finish the content of the glass and poured himself some more. He couldn’t have gotten more obvious in assuring his host the drink was harmless.

“ Well done. “ 

Foltest didn’t ask him to elaborate. Why would Emhyr tell him of his business in Beauclair anyway? 

“ It’s prisoners. “, he did elaborate after all, to the King’s surprise. He also decided to join his guest and took a sip from the glass. “ A trivial matter but requires attention on my part. I don’t wish to bore you with that.” 

“ That’s fair, no politics, right?” , Foltest agreed and enjoyed some amusement when the Emperor quickly took away the glass from his lips to look at the liquid to inspect it carefully. “ What’s wrong? Not your type?”

“ There is… vodka in this wine.” , he announced to himself. 

“ Yes, I think so.”, Foltest chuckled. “It's my men’s demijohn, I have no damn idea what kind of stuff they put in. My guess would be..“ , he took a very small sip to sample it in a sommelier manner and concluded. “ A medium cheap red wine from Pontar, some white wine from… who knows, definitely pure Temerian vodka and… maybe ale. It’s an absolute concoction of shit.”

“ I see.” if the King expected Emhyr to throw away the drink or make a dismissive comment about Northerners and their tastes, he was left speechless when the Southerner took a last look at the liquid and decided to drink the entire thing. He then put the empty glass on the table. “ This is very bad. I’d like to have some more.” 

“ Feel free to have as much as you like then. You know, the demijohn with whatever’s in it was gifted by one of my soldiers as a gesture. This instantly makes it more valuable to me than some expensive high-class wine. “ 

“ We’re in Toussaint. Expensive high class batches are all that comes from these vineyards. What you brought here is rare. “, Emhyr took advantage of the offer and filled his glass with more from the strong drink. “ I understand. There are times when I would trade an entire vineyard for something like this, too. “

Foltest was pleasantly surprised by his host. Surely, he knew the Emperor was not to be trusted as almost everything he ever did have a hidden purpose. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy the company. He suspected that acts of cold professionalism, dead body language and short but efficient speech were necessary for his position in court, but in the end of the day, even Emhyr needed to relieve the unbearable stress and have something strong to drink, just like anybody else. Foltest could relate too. 

“ I suppose your soldiers don’t give you shitty homebrew too often.” , noted the King. “ I should talk to them… if they got over my men throwing furniture at them off the terrace.” 

“ I’ve been told you took care of the matter.” 

“ You wasted your time on getting this reported, I always get things done.”

The terrible drink stopped tasting that terrible after the second glass. 

“ Are you nervous?”, Emhyr suddenly asked in a casual manner.

“ Why would I be?” 

“ I don’t know, you tell me. You’ve clenched your glass so tight, you would have broken it if it wasn’t silver.” 

“ You’re right. “, the King noticed his fingers were white from the pressure his hand was putting on the metal. Even so, if the Emperor was fantasizing about Foltest feeling inferior or threatened in his presence, he was sadly mistaken. “But it’s not me being nervous. It’s just… I don’t know which is the right way to handle this meeting. You claim it’s just casual drinking, no politics and yet it’s always about stakes with you.” 

The Temerian could swear he almost spotted a smile on the face of his host.

“ I see your point. “, he responded by words only, his demeanor didn’t show anything to prove it. “ I can assure you, there are no stakes. We’ve been through two wars already and never even met. Naturally, I was curious to see what kind of person you are. Like it or not, we’re still bound to work together. “ 

“ And do you plan to let me know what kind of person you are, in return, or I’ll have to make my own guesses?” Foltest realized he once again answered with a question. It was Emhyr’s fault for being purposely irritating.

“ Don’t relate honesty to expressiveness too much. I’ve seen incredible performances of emotion so masterfully hiding the daggers behind the curtain, one could easily be blinded by the stage light. By the time you notice something was wrong, you’ll feel the cold metal reaching your insides. At least you’ll get no performances from me. “

“ Should I trust you?” 

“ An honest answer? No. You shouldn’t. “ 

“ Well, I trust you on that. Cheers!” 

The cold metal sounded better between two silver cups than piercing through flesh. 

\---

With or without trust, the two rulers seemed to enjoy the evening pretty well. The occasional hidden attacks and rivalry were surely present, but mostly in the shape of sports malice. The cups were quickly filling the moment they were empty as the twilight sky slowly became black covering the town in a dark veil with no moon. The topics slipped one after another, from more general to one step more personal.

“ If what I’ve heard is right, there is no way the Baron could have fathered these children.”, Emhyr made a slight hint he knew of his guest’s situation.

“ Just out of curiosity, how the hell do you get intelligence like this?”, Foltest laughed at the notion. “ Do you actually send informants undercover as maids in people’s castles to investigate if the old bastards can get it hard? But, really, the old Baron can’t perform for at least a decade. It’s funny that even the Nilfgaardians know about it. “ 

“ There were rumours and I simply wished to confirm them. “, the Emperor explained with honesty. “ After all, your daughter Adda will most likely be married in Redania and this leaves you with La Valette’s underaged son as an heir of the Temerian throne. “ 

“ Someone’s sticking his big nose in Temeria. “, Foltest commented. Truth be told, he wasn’t even mad, all of this was a public secret. The other rules in the North were probably making comments about it behind closed doors, while the Emperor, with his big nose, perfect for coinage, at least had the courtesy of laying the cards on the table. “ He’s way too young, but I’ll make sure to prepare him well until the time comes for him to rule Temeria. “ 

“ So you plan to recognize him officially, that’s honourable.” 

“ Wouldn’t you?” 

“ Without any doubt. How does the Baroness feel about this? “, there it was. Of course, even in a casual conversation, Emhyr would slide a seemingly unimportant related question to gain pieces of information that might appear crucial in the future. Or was he hinting at something he knew and wanted the King to be also aware of? There was no doubt about it, he had informants in the La Valette castle. Lately, Maria Louisa was starting to give Foltest a cold shoulder and the King’s concern that she would not let him recognize his own children were confirmed by no one else but the goddamn Emperor of Nilfgaard, out of all. “I thought so. “

“ She will get to her senses. What else do your informants say? Because, as I see it, I might need to pay them as well.” , the Temerian ruler suppressed his disappointment and quickly put the edge of the glass in his mouth to stop himself from opening the lid of the never-ending stream of swears at everything.

“ It won’t be that hard.” , interestingly enough, instead of enjoying his guest’s discomfort, Emhyr tried to fix the misunderstanding. “ Apparently Aryan La Valette was spilling the entire story for everyone to hear during a royal dinner in Cidaris. Alcohol seems to untangle his tongue pretty well. I’m pretty convinced the story reached all borders of the continent. I just happened to have the pleasure of receiving it as well. “ 

“ Sure.”, Foltest dismissed. “ What else did you hear?” 

“ Nothing that you already don’t know. Some of the families truly don’t believe you’re fit to be a King. Whether they’ll act upon it or not, however, is up to you. I don’t have any knowledge of something in the making. But I advise you to not put your guard down.”

“ I’ll manage.”, he didn’t want to admit what Emhyr was hinting at, concerned him, so he put the effort to keep his dismissive attitude. In order to escape the discomfort, he reversed the conversation. “ Temeria isn’t Nilfgaard, Emhyr, the families don’t gather in secret meetings waiting to stab the ruler and usurp the throne. If they wanna do it, they’ll start a fully-fledged battle in my face.” 

“ I see.” , something changed in the Emperor’s tone and Foltest realized he might have stricken a nerve with his comment. He also realized what he had just said but the stone was already thrown. 

“ I guess drinking unravels my tongue as well but this is no excuse. You have my apologies, I didn’t mean it like that. “ 

“ Doesn’t matter, you’re not wrong. Apology accepted.“ , yet again words didn’t match demeanor. Probably not even Emhyr himself realized how hurtful that memory was. After all, to watch traitors stabbing your father to death wasn’t something to easily forget. Foltest had always been curious how his host managed to escape and what he was doing for all those years before reclaiming his throne but wasn’t sure if he would go that far to ask. “ It’s what it is. In Nilfgaard, a fully-fledged civil war simply cannot happen unless the ruler really mismanages his authority and turns his subjects, commanders, and most of the families and guilds against him. This is of course, impossible, as such incapable individual wouldn’t be granted the position in the first place. The only way to overthrow the Emperor is through crawling in the shadows like a snake and making sure to cover your traces to avoid the folk’s wrath. Assassination with a scapegoat to take the blame. But make no mistake, nobody is immune to treason. Maybe it’s the Northerners' way to do it face to face, as your style of politics allows it, but times change. Not everyone in Temeria is honourable, as much as you like to believe that.”

“ I don’t make the mistake to generalize, of course there will be whoresons like that. Let them try, I’ll catapult their corpses to Mahakam. “ 

“ That doesn’t sound bad at all.” 

“ Just don’t steal it. You dance on graves all you want, but I’ll catapult bodies to the mountains.” , Foltest said jokingly..

“ Deal.” , on purpose or not, Emhyr was also starting to lose count on his drinks. “ May I ask you something, somewhat personal?”

“ Ask, but you know this will lead to me asking personal questions also.” The Temerian was pretty sure his sister’s name would appear somewhere in the following conversation, but he was stricken with a question not even he expected.

“ That is fair. Who is Vernon Roche? The man seems to be very special to get such a high rank and you seem to trust him a lot. Yet, I’m not sure there are any records of a Roche family, even in Temeria. This means he doesn’t belong to a specific noble family.”

“ I’m impressed.”, Foltest leaned back on the backrest of his chair and stretched his legs. “ I was pretty sure you were about to ask something inappropriate about my sister, just like any other king once drinks get us closer and comfortable, yet you ask about Vernon Fucking Roche.” 

“ I doubt this is a topic you wish to discuss. Also, I’m actually curious about your Blue Stripes Commander.” , that smooth charismatic talker, the King thought. The question was harmless enough. What hidden motive could that hold, anyway, seemed like genuine curiosity. 

“ No, he doesn’t belong to a noble family. He was raised without a home, in poverty, and had talent, zeal, eagerness to action. From your point, it probably looks like I gave him the biggest sign of recognition and honour, but the truth is, it’s just the other way around. “

“ You take pride in that man, undoubtedly.”

“ Absolutely. Vernon is a pure patriot, my most trustworthy and loyal man and I would entrust him with my life and even with Temeria without hesitation.” 

“ This is very rare.” 

“ It is, even in the North. That’s why I don’t care that much about nobility. Being high- born doesn’t grant you qualities, your character does.” 

“ I completely agree. But I envy you nobly. My men would jump off a cliff if I tell them to, but only until my position of power isn’t compromised. “ 

“ Is this what pulls you North so much?”, it was another instance of the Southern ruler to show a sense of humour and take the remark as the joke it was intended. Foltest was starting to really enjoy the company. From all he’d heard or noticed about Nilfgaardians, they were stuck up, mostly devoid of humour and high on themselves. The King really disliked the blacks. But their Emperor, on the other hand, he did like. In other circumstances, if it wasn’t for the two wars behind them, they could have even developed some sort of friendship. That thought was absurd in the current circumstances unfortunately. There were way too many corpses floating in Temerian rivers. Emhyr was still the enemy and no Cintrian peace pact and economic assistance could ever change that.

“ Now can I ask you something personal?”, Foltest made sure his host didn’t forget his word. He received a nod as confirmation. His host finished his fifth or sixth consecutive glass as if to prepare for anything. Emhyr already dropped Foltest’s children into the conversation, the legitimate and the illegitimate ones, but how about his? “ I can’t put it delicately, that’s not something I’m good at, so feel free to tell me to fuck off. Why is it you don’t have any heirs?” 

“ You’re right, being delicate is not your strong side. But I’m not sure how to answer that. It’s not that important to me who inherits the throne of Nilfgaard once I expire.” 

“ Seems to me like you deliberately avoid it.” 

“ How so?” 

“ You sent your wife to rule Cintra the second you married her. Wasn’t she supposed to give you an heir?” 

“ She’s just a child. This marriage was strictly political and you know it. “ , the Northerner managed to strike another nerve. He wasn’t sure what that nerve was.

“ You spent so much time and soldiers to find Cirilla of Cintra, one could think you were desperately in love with her. “, Emhyr probably just found out he wasn’t the only one who knew how to keep pushing. The alcohol was washing away the neutral mask, and it was getting harder for the southern ruler to keep a straight face. He looked at the glass reflectively. Something was obviously bothering him.

“ I needed her as a placed figure.”, he insisted.” The issue was, I actually met her and felt bad for her. She was abducted, brought to Nilfgaard to marry the man responsible for her family’s death and the occupation of her Kingdom. When I saw how terrified she was, it finally reached me how much pain I've caused her. One thing is to plan your steps in the distance when people are just numbers. But to see them face to face and reflect on the consequences of your actions, it hits you differently. “ 

“ You felt guilt?”, Foltest didn’t know why he found it that surprising. But it was just as Emhyr had said, people were numbers and figures on the other side. During the wars the King thought of the Emperor as a hostile inanimate entity, and it most likely, it was the other way around as well. But his interlocutor was indisputably human. With everything, a human was capable of feeling behind the wall of their deeds.

“ I did. Also shame.”, the Nilfgaardian confirmed. “ I decided I couldn’t harm her anymore and let her go.” 

“ You still made her marry you and rule in your place.”, noted Foltest. For a second he felt as if the Emperor was talking about somebody else. 

“ That was the best decision. The Cintrian throne was hers to inherit, so I made sure she did. I also made sure she is safe there and nobody will harm her. Do you wish me to remind you how many of you had plans for her, some of which included murder?” 

The Northerner had nothing to say on the matter. There were indeed plots between him and the rulers of the neighboring kingdoms to kill the Lion Cub of Cintra just so Emhyr Var Emreis wouldn’t get his hand on her and the Elder Blood. Apparently, they were all mistaken, as the Emperor just used her as a political figure to ensure his rule over Cintra and prevent the subjects from future rebellion. Cintrians were like most Northerners: they could live under occupation but they will never get assimilated. In the back of their mind, their new ruler would always be the invader and they would eventually riot. With Cirilla as their queen, they at least had the illusion of being independent in the hands of their own ruling dynasty. Indeed a well-calculated political move. Yet, Foltest was sure that no matter how hard his host tried to hide it, he definitely had feelings for the Cintrian Queen. The way he talked about her, calling her a child, wanting to protect her, maybe he wished to adopt her instead if the tactics allowed it.

The hours were rolling, the heavy demijohn was getting lighter, and the conversation was getting more pleasant, personal and even friendly. Both rulers didn’t mind sharing harmless stories from their experience and even childhoods, and Foltest was also amazed to learn that Emhyr actually spent around two decades in the North, hiding from the Empire during the rule of the Usurper. That explained not only the perfect common speech that he spoke with no accent but also the deep understanding of Northern culture. And most of all, it explained the Emperor’s liking for modesty. Foltest had dealt with Nilfgaardian aristocrates before, they were more pretentious, loved their luxury, and had an intolerance for the lower class and everything that came from there. They were born and raised this way. But his host was different, he knew what it meant to have everything, lose everything, live with nothing and then earn everything by yourself. Two decades in hiding had built quite the character. At least, he knew how to appreciate cheap disgusting drinks without complaining like those high- born drivellers around him. 

This is where the biggest problem lied. Foltest, with all his prejudice and hopefulness to hate his enemy, actually liked him. They were very different in character, morals, and ways of handling issues, but in the core, they also had a lot in common and could feel a connection and understanding. The King even started to find his host’s restraint and politeness charming. Most of all, his interlocutor had one undeniable virtue the Temerian truly respected- he was reflective and very reasonable. Most people Foltest knew, including himself, were hot-headed and guilty of acting first with boiling blood. Emhyr was calm and thought carefully before deciding to speak or act. If he wasn’t sure about something, he would ask and clear out the subject, but never jump to conclusions. 

This was indeed a problem. The King didn’t want to like his host. This man was an enemy and not to be trusted. The very notion that Emhyr was just playing a role to put his guest at ease and to appear friendly but was plotting a scheme behind his back, infuriated him. 

If only the circumstances were different. Then what? 

Chapter Six

Despite his emerging rage, the Temerian ruler didn’t let the conversation die. Between exchanging stories, remarks, and even pure gossiping that none of the two monarchs were above, Foltest felt that anger mostly towards himself. Emhyr was a strategist and a very good one at that, it was in his nature and style to doublecross, to use charisma, and try to win the enemy. But why, the hell, knowing this full well, would the Northerner still feel that much attraction to the Emperor’s character? He wasn’t stupid. Sure, he was drunk, but when did this ever prevent him from having common sense? Foltest was a great judge of character and yet Emhyr didn’t strike him as a liar at all. Everything that went between them felt completely genuine. 

Nothing about this man made any sense. It was like his host was two different people- Emhyr and the harpy that ruled as the Emperor.

“ Is everything alright?” 

“ M? Yes, yes, of course, it is. Just spaced out for a second.” 

“ Maybe we should stop drinking. I think we both exceeded our limits.”

“ Welcome to the Northern way then. It’s not a good fuddle if you don’t regret it in the morning. “ 

“ I haven’t done anything like this since I took my throne back.”

“ How about before that?”

“ A few times. Once with a Skelligan, I remember regretting being born the next couple of days. “ 

“ You were jumping on the heavy-weights, this is a loss in advance”, there it was again. Why wouldn’t he stop being such a pleasant company? Why did he have so many experiences, or knew everything on every topic they started? Foltest felt he had to provoke him somehow, to show his true self. To stop bullshitting him, he thought. He scanned the room for ideas but the only thing that caught his eyes was the caskets where the emperor had arranged in perfect order the documents he was working on the previous night.

“ Those caskets full of papers seems like an enormous project. That’s a hell of work for one person.” 

“ I’ll have to disappoint you. It’s just normal paperwork: finance, trade routes, resource allocation, release papers, human resource placement, concepts, should I go on?” 

“ You’re not kidding?” 

“ Sadly, no. But it has to be done.” 

“ You can’t convince me you rule an entire Empire and don’t have people to do that for you. “ 

“ I do have an entire administration for that. But I prefer to be familiar with everything before it gets issued. And fix whatever needs to be fixed.“ 

“ Sounds to me you simply trust nobody in your circle.”, Foltest summarized. “ Is it why you came all the way from Alba to deal with that prisoner business personally?”

“ It was the wise thing to do. “, Emhyr was finishing his probably seventh glass. His all demeanor felt somewhat melancholic. “ You’ve noticed correctly. Unfortunately, you can find a traitor in any government. In Nilfgaard, however, they are everywhere on every step of the ladder and if you deal with one, two more will appear in their place. “ 

“ So I’ve heard. I also heard about the trials; you punished the traitors pretty severely and showed no mercy. Not that I wouldn’t deal with something like that differently. Minus exposing the corpses to rot in the capital square. Do you think they’ll dare to try it again?”

“ They certainly will. Just waiting for the right opportunity. A moment of hesitation on my part, a mistake, a distraction. “, the Emperor explained. “But it’s not just about aristocrats plotting to replace me with someone more favourable. That’s not what concerns me. The issue goes deeper. Power abuse, fund misappropriation, information leaking. How do you think you won the war?”

“ By having a better battle strategy, a stronger resolve and the unmatched zeal of Northern warriors who have everything to lose.” Although Foltest was well aware of the information leaks that gave the North advantage thanks to the Redenian intelligence, he wasn’t going to dismiss the spirit of his people that sealed the deal.

“ Treason.'' Emhyr on the other side wasn’t keen on acknowledging anything regarding the Northener’s capacity to win victory without a mole in the Nilfgaardian ranks. “ All my plans were bestowed upon my opponents to the smallest detail. And I was very cautious to give my generals just fragments of those plans piece by piece. One at a time. That is why I won’t make the same mistakes again and I deal with the important matters personally. “ 

“ That’s unfortunate, I get it. But here’s where you’re wrong:” Foltest was already feeling dizzy and warm as if he was floating in a calm sea immersed from the neck down in slow little waves. Then he just went along with pouring another glass. The vessel was getting lighter. “ Not even the full invasion plans can help a weak army against your numerous professionally trained soldiers. The strategy is one thing, but in the end everything leans on numbers and steel, and you still had the upper hand with those. There is one thing you didn’t consider and you can’t blame traitors for it. Your aggression united the North, left the people with everything to lose. Even small children took pitchforks to fight for their future, and no army can’t defeat resolve like this. The more you thread on, the stronger this resolve got. Let me be frank with you.”

“ As if you restrained yourself from doing it so far.” , Emhyr seemed distracted and reflective, but Foltest knew he was listening very carefully. “Go on.”

“ Your armies were the aggressor with no other mission but to follow orders and occupy territories. They were left alone like pawns, while you were sitting safely in your palace, pulling strings and playing politics. Their moral was based on discipline, duty and a false sense of superiority, they didn’t have to protect anything but your interests. My armies, however, were fighting for their lands, families, honour and actually had their ruler in the frontline, fighting beside them and leading them to victory.” 

“ I respect your honesty, Foltest, all of this might have been correct if you didn't view it from the wrong perspective.”, the Emperor didn’t seem offended by the remarks. Just the opposite, he was reflecting his own mistakes and learning from them. A pretty rare quality, if the King had to compare him to the rulers in the North. That man was dangerous and the countries above Cintra were never safe, despite all that economic dependency smoke screen. “ You judge me and Nilfgaardians in general by Northern standard.. But we are different in mind, culture, values, and everything else. You can’t possibly relate enough to make the comparison. But here’s the thing. “, he paused to sip the rest of his drink. By that point, the Temerian ruler could bet his Southern colleague had his head swimming. For starters, Emhyr’s tone and body language weren’t as measured and formal as before. He had begun to relax and show emotion, even allowing himself to gesture. “If I’ve ever made a mistake in my judgment, it was exactly that of thinking of Northerners as they were Nilfgaardians. I overestimated some of your traits and definitely underestimated others. This caused the loss of significant advantage. Lesson learned. “ 

Foltest had already passed the point at tipsiness and was starting to get intoxicated. This, as he expected, was also starting to remove the boundaries he had about what was wise to say and what not. His building anger only added to the sheer annoyance of talk about the Emperor learning from mistakes when it came to the Northerners?

“ Speaking of lessons, I’ve also learned mine.”, he then said. “Emhyr, I know you’re not done.” 

There was no response on the other end. The King wanted to make sure his host knew exactly what he meant. 

“ I know you’re planning another war. “ 

“ Interesting assumption.” , what gave him out was him instantly trying to raise his guard and tighten his body language. He couldn’t, instead, he simply looked confused.

“ Cut the crap.” , in a sudden burst of rage, Foltest slammed the table with his fist. Emhyr didn’t even blink. The King was now shouting.“ I don’t buy any of this! You may outwit all these crowned imbeciles with letting them think the war exhausted your resources and you try to strengthen the economy for everyone for fuck knows why. But listen, I’m not Henselt or Demavend. You gave up way too easily. I know you will try to lay your hands on the North again. And when you do that, I will fucking chop them off!” 

“ Your conduct is ridiculous.” the Nilfgaardian laughed. 

“ Is it? Know this. I defeated you in Sodden, I defeated you in Brenna, I will defeat you again even if it ends me. Any questions?“ 

“ Are you done?” , well, that was a question.

“ Yes, I’m done. I said what I needed to say.” , Foltest calmed down and angrily looked at his enemy.

“ Good. Now you listen to me.”, Emhyr spoke slowly and distinctly. “I’ll ignore the fact that you just threatened me and level with you. I never lied when I said my resources reached certain limitations and needed renewal. I didn’t lie when I claimed that I have no interest in a weak North that suffers economically and wanted to help. But more importantly…” The Emperor stood up from his chair and made a few steps but instead of walking aimlessly around the room like usual, he stood before Foltest with a deadly seriousness in his face. “I’ll look you straight in the eyes when i say this. You and I will not meet on the battlefield. My plans, if we assume I hypothetically have ones, won’t be a concern of yours.” 

He was either the world’s most efficient liar who was able to pull off such an outstanding play of honesty even after half a gallon of cheap alcohol concoction, or he was actually honest. Foltest had to believe him. Even so, there was something about this that didn’t feel right. Unfortunately, the Temerian gave up before intoxication and in a manner of pure habit, and filled his glass once again. “Won’t be a concern of yours..”, of whom then, you damn harpy? 

“ Foltest,..” Emhir suddenly spoke, still close to the edge of the table, so wouldn’t lose balance. Perhaps it was at that moment when he realized how strong that drink was. “.. I believe it’s time to call it a night. We’re both intoxicated and things are getting out of hand.”

“ I’m still not done with my drink.”, The King dismissed as he shook his glass in front of his face to demonstrate it was full. “ In fact, we still have this whole thing to finish.”

“ I don’t think so.”, Emhyr frowned. “ This vessel has enough alcohol to kill us both. I had a pleasant time, I hope you had as well. It’s time for you to return to your quarters. “

“ You really don’t like to hear the word No.” , Foltest was starting to find the entire situation funny. The Emperor was undeniably nervous. “ I wonder what you’re thinking. That crazy drunk Temerian will try to kill you while the Imperia Brigade soldiers are on the lower floor guarding the entrance to the staircase.”

“ There are only so many threats I would tolerate. The fact that you’re a King and also very drunk, won’t save you. I’ve dealt with people for less.”, finally some pure emotions on the surface. Emhyr was certainly angry.

Foltest slowly stood from his chair and thought the situation through. He suddenly laughed.

“ Is there something funny that I don’t see?” The Nilfgaardian seemed like being close to losing his restraint and punching the King.

“ It's funny when you look at it. Your guards aren’t here and we’re also both unarmed except for those useless daggers. It would have been a very stupid fight between two drunk monarchs throwing punches and trying to stab each other and probably missing every hit.”

Emhyr was trying to say something but his guest’s words reached through him and he stopped. His angry face gave up to a smile but he restrained himself from laughing. That man should smile more, he did have a very nice smile. 

“ Very well. I will have to admit it, that would be very undignifying.” 

The alcohol was really twisting Foltest’s mind into different directions. In any other way, he wouldn’t put his hands on the Emperor’s face. Poor man, he thought, he does look so puzzled. But so was the Temerian, this ridiculous attraction was like a nightmare he wished to wake up from. Unfortunately, there was no waking up, just dragging himself and his friend and enemy way down to the rock bottom with him.

“ What exactly do you think you’re do-” , Foltest didn’t let his host finish his phrase. While he was still holding his face, he leaned forward and kissed the warm lips that froze in mid sentence. Emhyr who was already making a lot of effort to stand strong on his legs, lost footing from the shock of his guest’s unexpected move and fell to sit on the edge of the desk behind him. He instinctively put his left hand on the wooden surface to prevent himself from losing any more balance. While he was trying to make sense of the situation and actually understand what was happening, Foltest freed his left arm from Emhyr’s rough cheekbone and moved it to his waist. Facing no resistance, he deepened the kiss and slid his tongue into his enemy’s mouth. 

Chapter Seven

He didn’t have any concept of the time, the kiss might have lasted a few seconds or more than a minute, but his reckless adventure was near its end when he felt a cold blade pressing against his throat. Giving in the sharp pain from the pressure he made a step back to regain the distance between him and the Emperor.

“ I asked you a question.”, Emhyr had extended his arm that was holding the dagger as much as possible to keep Foltest away. He was speaking calmly, quietly and very threateningly. “ Have you completely lost your mind or you simply have a death wish? You want to die, is that it?” 

“ I have no answer.”, he shrugged. In all honesty, he knew he should feel ashamed. Why didn’t he then? That was anything but normal. “ Does it matter?…”

“ Silence!”, Emhyr demanded. He slowly retracted his dagger from the King’s throat but kept it in his hand. “ This is very unfortunate. I was actually starting to like you. You seemed honourable and earned my respect. But then you had too much to drink and started with the nonsense. First, you insult me, then you accuse me, then you threaten me, and in the end… whatever degeneracy you just attempted. Foltest, I knew you are a very lustful man who lets your… physiology do the thinking for you. But I couldn’t have imagined you’ll go this far! “ 

“ That’s rich from someone who was trying to play me the entire evening. So you don’t insult, you don’t accuse, you don’t threaten and you don’t attempt degeneracy. No, instead you look me in the eye and talk crap while we both know you will never leave Temeria alone no matter what. You only wanted to know my character so you could explore my weaknesses. There is way more honour in attacking somebody face to face like a man, instead of plotting how to strike them from the shadows like a snake. Sure, you don’t attempt degeneracy, but you don’t seem to resist it either. Or did your tongue accidentally get lost in my throat?” 

“ You’re imagining things. Everything from you seeing hidden political motives to the last absurd accusation. “ , even through the curtain of blur, Foltest noticed that his enemy got lost in his thoughts for a second, he was trying to remember if he indeed took part or not in the unnatural exchange of familiarities. His certainty was giving out before doubt in his own actions. 

“ Fine. Have it your way then.” , the Northerner laughed. He looked at the demijohn that was now rolling on the floor, spilling wet liquid on the stone tiles, and declared. “ I’ll leave this here as a memento. “

“ Where do you think you’re going?”, Emhyr suddenly struck more like a command than a question. He slowly stood from the edge of the desk and walked towards Foltest trying to look as sober as possible. His legs were indeed struggling with the task.

“ To my quarters. Obviously. Isn’t that what you wanted to begin with?” 

“ You’re not going anywhere.” 

“ You can’t order me around, Your Imperial Entitlement. “, the King tried to sound as sarcastic as possible to underline the Emperor’s unexisting authority. He got closer to the exit. But so did Emhyr, who put his hand on the wooden door to prevent his guest from opening it.

“ I can’t order you but I can warn you what you’re doing is very dangerous.” 

“ You’re afraid I’ll talk. Are you daft? Why would I?”

“ Foltest, you’re in no condition to watch your mouth. You’ve proven so. Just a word of this … accident slips, and it will ignite like a forest fire. By the morning we’ll both have forgotten what happened, but the others won’t. This story, provable or not, even as a vile rumour will discredit us.”

“ It will discredit you, Emhyr. Your authority is based on an image of divine flawlessness of bullshit.” Foltest removed his hand from the door handle and faced his host. The Emperor was visibly concerned but this only made the entire situation funnier for the Temerian.

“ You’re wrong, Foltest. The smallest crack in a ruler’s authority can be exploited by their enemies. Even in Temeria. And yours already has enough cracks as it is. Your opponents haven’t forgotten your past.” Emhyr didn’t have to mention Foltest’s sister Adda. Unfortunately, even the King had to admit there was a legit argument here. His past actions almost caused a war with Redenia and later, if it wasn’t for a witcher who indirectly revealed a traitor and stopped a civil war in the making, things could have really gotten out of hand. Although the whole story ended well for Foltest, the shadow of the past was always there and the whispers behind the corners never really stopped. Who knew how this could have escalated in Temeria had rumours of their King taking part in degenerate acts with the Emperor of Nilfgaard, out of all, surfaced. The consequences for the latter could have been even worse. Foltest had learned enough from his conversations with Emhyr to suspect the opposition in that snake nest known as the Nilfgaardian Government would be glad to have something like this at their disposal to first start ruining their inconvenient ruler’s image, then proceed with something more final.

“ You must be a jester to even think I would say anything about this to anyone. I’m intoxicated, not an idiot. But if you are that paranoid and it will make you shut up and get over it, I’ll stay till we both get sober.” his enemy seemed relieved. “ Listen, I think you’re a prick, but I don’t wish you ill.”

“ Why not? If you truly believe I’m your enemy and your country is in danger, wouldn’t you want to gain an advantage from my domestic conflicts?”

“ I told you, didn’t I? If you truly attempt to attack the North a third time, I’ll face you on the battlefield and humiliate you fair and square. I’m a war tactician, not a politician. This whole scheming crap makes me sick. “ 

“ Admirable.” , Emhyr finally let his hand go from the door. He was no longer bound from his growing tension which finally allowed him to notice he was still clutching the dagger in his other hand. As if waking up from a hypnosis, he put the blade in its scabbard. “ How’s your neck. Did I cut you?”

Foltest had already forgotten about that. He touched the scratch with his fingers and wiped a few drops of blood. 

“ Just a scratch. “, he dismissed. “ I scared you quite a bit to pull a dagger on me, didn’t I?

“ Don’t mistake irritation with fear. Your behaviour was insulting enough to provoke my instincts.” 

“ With all due respect, what instincts did my behaviour provoke exactly?” Foltest loved the choice of words his host had made. Those certainly didn’t come out as the Emperor intended. 

“ This sounds like a remark I would have said once. When I was nine!”, Emhyr commented with annoyance. “ I always wondered how could someone this immature manage to stay alive in the game of thrones for so long.” 

The Temerian would have tried to respond with something clever, but his host wasn’t quite finished. He was already standing close enough before Foltest and he raised his hand enough to touch the King’s chain with his fingertips.

“ It suits you. “, Emhyr slides his fingers slowly following the circular shape of the symbol. “ The lily is said to represent such immaturity and innocence. While lions, stags and eagles are getting themselves dirty in politics and schemes, this lily seems to avoid it all with pride. I only wonder for how long will its white stay pure.” 

Foltest wished to be reminded when exactly did the conversation turn so weird. His host wasn’t hard to read just because of his skills to hide his temper and thoughts. It was his mind that was tortured and distant, a book one could read but never truly understand. Who knew what was going through that head. 

“ What about the sun then?”, the King finally spoke. “ Isn’t it sad that it’s supposed to be above that crap and yet it’s fully covered in it.” 

“ That’s … debatable.”

The circular motions of the fingers around the symbol stopped. The Emperor held the medallion in hand as if he wanted to inspect it but his gaze was empty and looked through the engraved lily.

“ What is it you want, Emhyr?” 

“ I don’t know anymore.”, he replied with simple pure honesty. The melancholy in his deep voice revealed sadness, even guilt.” What I want and what I have to do are completely different things.”

“ If only you had any power and status to change that, right?”, Foltest mocked. Deeply, he wanted to annoy or anger the Nilfgaardian to drag him out of the melancholy.

“ My will, heart, and life belong to the Empire. Just like everybody else. In that manner, I’m not above the simplest servant. People die, concepts don’t.”

“ You’re babbling nonsense, my friend. “, unknowingly, the King not only called his enemy a friend but also put his hand on his shoulder. “ I was hoping you’d be a happy or at least the aggressive type of drunk, not the depressed one.” 

“ Depressed? No.”, the Nilfgaardian seemed as if he was awakened from a trans. “ But you’re right about the other part. I surely overestimated my alcohol endurance.”

“ Well, that’s the thing. If you receive a drink, crafted by soldiers with the idea to keep them intoxicated enough not to feel the blades of pikes piercing their limbs, it’s gotta be too strong for you.” 

“ I’ll make sure to remember it.” , Emhyr finally let go of the golden medallion. “ Can I ask you something, Foltest?”

“ Ask away.”

“ What was that for? Why did you kiss me?” 

“ I don’t know.”, he shrugged.” I just felt like it. Don’t get the wrong impression, I’m not into men, never have been, never will be. But call it a strange connection, a whim of an entitled lustful King, a split moment of madness? Call it whatever you want and you’ll nail it better than I would because I honestly have no idea.” 

“ Then I have no idea either.”, Emhyr said in a matter-of-factly tone and once again grabbed the golden chain of the King. In a short moment of decision, he pulled it sharply towards himself and met Foltest’s lips with a harsh kiss.

“ What the hell?”, the King exclaimed when it was over. Then he repeated the same sentence with a different, calmer intonation. He could have found way too many reasons not to succumb to this insane idea, but none of those reasons seemed important enough at the moment. 

He started forgetting all of them one by one with each piece of clothing piling up on the floor. 

This whole nightmare made no sense but he loved it. It made no sense to make out with his political enemy who had started two wars against his Kingdom. It didn’t make sense that instead of kissing and exploring the body of a young lavish hourglass-figure lady, he felt the joy to do so to a fully grown strong and masculine body of another male with almost the same proportions Foltest himself had. Finally, it also didn’t make any sense that the feeling of Emhyr’s rough hands around his skin felt so stimulating. 

Was it the damn drink? Was this what the Stripes were doing behind closed doors when they weren’t training or fighting? Ploughing hell! Or it was just two eccentric rulers whose minds eventually got worn out and finally lost. That must have been it.

“ Are we really doing this? Like this, on the floor?”

“ Will it be too much to ask you to stay quiet and don’t make things worse than they are? I’m trying… not to think.” 

So that was the strategy. No thinking, just getting on with it. 

“ I thought you were the analytical one, Emperor.”

“ The one time I wish to stop using my brain, you decide to use yours?”

Foltest decided not to reply. He was already too caught up in his anti-fantasy and followed the advice. He led his host to lay on his stomach and ran fingers through the thick black locks of hair that the Nilfgaardian had put so much effort into taming. The King was spread sitting on Emhyr’s legs and could clearly notice numerous scars on his back. Some of these scars were badly healed spots of missing skin. Foltest didn’t question any of it, he simply leaned forward and kissed one of the bigger scars above the Emperor’s shoulder blade. Still holding the locks of hair tight, he abruptly pulled his enemy’s head back and moved his kiss to the neck. 

As much as he enjoyed a good long stimulation, the Temerian was already way too aroused to postpone what he actually wanted to do from the start. The tension in his loins had more heaviness than any rational thought left in the King’s mind. While he was laying with all his weight over his now lover, Foltest took his already hardened member in hand. The thin skin around it was exceptionally sensitive and the light touch felt painfully pleasant. He was glad the alcohol had the ability to deafen pain like an anesthetic, or else he couldn’t even imagine how much it would hurt his current partner. Although he tried to enter gently, his body wasn’t responding to his will, and he went sloppily forcing himself through, instead of letting it happen naturally. He instinctively let go of Emhyr’s hair and placed the free palm over the Nilfgaardian’s mouth to prevent him from screaming. The latter did make a little bit of sound, but it was all muffled behind the hand. Foltest went as slowly as his lust allowed him to make sure his partner would enjoy the intercourse as much as he did. 

Good thing the Emperor was paranoid enough to take residence in a tower with no room for hidden niches and to place his guards at the only entrance to the tower an entire floor below where the two monarchs were shamelessly given up reason and decency. This act of fornication existed only for them to experience, and for nobody else to see. No threat of consequences. The hell with decency, Foltest thought. As much as rules were important, sometimes there were way too many of them and simply interfered with people’s rights to watch their own damn business. The King hated he had to hide, but the situation left him with no other choice. He sincerely wished for Emhyr to fully get away with his mistake as well. After all, it was a mistake. A very satisfying, fulfilling, and exhilarating mistake. 

The responses of his partner’s body gave permission to Foltest to go harder. He didn’t want to remove his hand from the Emperor’s mouth because he enjoyed how the Nilfgaardian had locked the fingers behind his teeth and slowly licking them. The intercourse had built enough pressure and the King couldn’t hold it any longer. He buried his head in his partner’s dark hair and released the tension quietly while he was still inside. The exhaustion from the ecstasy made him lay a couple of moments, doing nothing, then he worked his hand under Emhyr’s body to meet the southerner’s fingers that he used to rhythmically stimulate himself. Caught on the request, Foltest moved from his partner and sat next to him to give the Nilfgaardian room to turn on his back. 

Well, the King thought, he couldn’t leave his enemy- friend- lover or whatever that man was to him, unfulfilled. It was only fair to repay the favour. His Imperial Majesty would praise the Great Sun for the King of Temeria had his mind entirely absent at that moment. And with such an absent mind and head filled with irrational lust, the Northerner lowered his head and took his partner’s member in his mouth to help him finish. He didn’t know which was worse: that he was bending the knee before the Emperor, that he was performing something as degenerate and untypical for his nature, or that he actually enjoyed it. He prayed the concoction would wipe away those memories for good.

\---

The sun was one of the most damned abominations of hell in the morning, the Temerian ruler reflected, while he was having an hour-long soak in a tube filled with ice-cold water, in the judgmental loneliness of his quarters. Two things were making it worse: his excruciating headache and his perfectly preserved memories of the previous night. Interestingly enough, the initial idea of making Anna Henrieta working a deal behind the back of the Emperor now seemed like the easiest thing to do in comparison to the fact Foltest now had to live with the recollection of everything that had escalated between him and that same Emperor. The King suddenly laughed. He wasn’t the only one who had to remember and pretend it didn’t happen.

Chapter Eight  
POV

Emhyr var Emreis had taken a fairly generous dose of a potion with anesthetic and stimulating effect. He had no time to reflect or regret things he had no power to change because work didn’t wait. The Emperor carefully went through the small stack of papers that were handed to him and made his conclusions. A young-looking man dressed in black patiently stood in silence. 

“ Outstanding work.”, Emhyr concluded and diligently placed the papers in one of the drawers on his desk. “ This completely justifies my suspicions.”

“ Thank you, Your Imperial Majesty!”, the man bowed. “ What will be your orders?”

“ You will speak nothing of your investigation, your findings, or the nature of the issue.”, the ruler noticed the visible confusion on his henchman’s face and decided to make sure he was understood. “ The only people who know of this are you and I. If this becomes known by anyone else, I will know you are responsible. Needless to say, you will be facing decapitation.”

“ Understood, Your Imperial Majesty!”

“ Very well, you may leave.”

The henchmen didn’t need to be told twice, he rushed through the exit and left his Emperor to work. Making sure he was alone, Emhyr opened the same drawer he had put the papers in and took them again. He put the edge of the stack close to one of the candles and once the paper got caught on the flame, he threw the documents in a tray to watch them crumble into dust. As he suspected, his cousin Anna Henrieta and King Foltest did plan a secret trade for a separate market. So be it. If the King wanted to save Temeria from Nilfgaardian influence, he could have that illusion. What Foltest didn’t know was no matter how successful his economic plan was, it was pointless in the end. 

The special ex- prisoners were all converted and persuaded to start working on the plans for successful assassinations. The killers were invisible, they were witcher mutants trained to penetrate any fortress, kill any monster, slay any king. Demavend, Henself, Radovid V, Esterad, Foltest. 

The idea of assassinating the King of Temeria left a terrible taste in the southerner's mouth. Unlike the rest, Foltest was an honourable man who did not deserve to meet such a gruesome end. Emhyr held a deep respect and liking for the man.

Unfortunately for him, what the Emperor wanted and what he had to do were two completely different things. 

The End


End file.
